S METER
While receiving, serves as an S-meter to measure and display the received signal strength. While transmitting, serves as a power meter plus an ALC meter, an SWR meter, or a Speech Processor compression meter. The Peak Hold function holds each reading for approximately half a second.

RF (RADIO FREQUENCY) GAIN
The RF gain is normally configured to the maximum level regardless of the operating modes. The transceiver has been configured to the maximum level at the factory. However, you may decrease the RF gain slightly when you have trouble hearing the desired signal because of excessive atmospheric noise or interference from other stations. First, take note of the peak S-meter reading of the desired
signal.

Turn the MULTI control counterclockwise until the S-meter reads the peak value that you noted.

• Signals that are weaker than this level will be attenuated and reception of the station will become easier. Depending on the type and gain of your antenna, and the condition of the band, adjust the RF gain. When using FM mode, always adjust the RF gain to the maximum level.

S METER
While receiving, serves as an S-meter to measure and display the received signal strength. While transmitting, serves as a power meter plus an ALC meter, an SWR meter, or a Speech Processor compression meter. The Peak Hold function holds each reading for approximately half a second.

RF (RADIO FREQUENCY) GAIN
The RF gain is normally configured to the maximum level regardless of the operating modes. The transceiver has been configured to the maximum level at the factory. 1)However, you may decrease the RF gain slightly when you have trouble hearing the desired signal because of excessive atmospheric noise or interference from other stations. First, take note of the peak S-meter reading of the desired
signal.

Turn the MULTI control counterclockwise until the S-meter reads the peak value that you noted.

• Signals that are weaker than this level will be attenuated and reception of the station will become easier.2) Depending on the type and gain of your antenna, and the condition of the band, adjust the RF gain. When using FM mode, always adjust the RF gain to the maximum level.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Groucho

RF Gain is like your squelch on VHF. 1)As you adjust it (RF Gain) down, it squelches out (or quiets out) all but the strongest signals that can get past the S-meter setting which is directly related to your RF Gain setting. On my Yaesu FT-857D, as I adust the RF Gain up, the S-meter needle goes up from 0 incrementally. 2)If I set the RF Gain to where the S-meter is at S6, then only signals that my radio receives that are greater than S6 will be sent to the audio. Otherwise, they are muted. IMVHO, it is a great way to eliminate some of the "noise" associated with operating mobile.

I always get Ø nose level with my vehicle's motor off. Once it is going, my usual S meter noise goes up to around S3. As I pass certain areas in my neighborhood or town, I get varying levels of noise, driving by lots of high power lines, places with a lot of Wi-Fi, etc. So I almost always keep my RF Gain at a level where only signals greater than S3 in strength will be heard. I had done a lot of work to my 80 to abate noise, and only on really bad propagation days do I need to open up the RF Gain more to even hear stations.

Keep the questions coming!

'73
Nathaniel
WØIIN

Sheesh! If I was any closer to the text from the manual I would have to be called out on plagiarism!

Yes it is. I was just pointing out how close you were to the manual :-)

Armed with the new knowledge, out I went to the parking lot for hands on.

So if I bring the gain from 100 to 80, very little noise is suppressed and S meter changes very little called it S5
If I change it from 80 to 70 some noise is quite, S meter changes from S5 to S9. Problem is I get a lot of clear conversation in the S7 to S9 range and that will be lost.

So I can't gain it down significantly with out loosing weak, but clean conversation. hmmm.

If I take it to S9 (about 60 to 75 on my dial) I get significant noise reduction, actual nice and quite. Clear station is above S9 so that works but I couldn't find any QSO during the 5 minutes I had to play with it.

My first seat-of-the-pants reaction from what you describe is that you haven't done enough noise abatement.

When I first installed my mobile rig in my 80, I figured if I could make contacts I didn't need to go any further. Then I really started to pay attention to the KØBG website (www.k0bg.com) and his expansive knowledge about noise abatement. I wrapped the spark plug wires with the copper-clad Scotch tape, I bonded each door, hood, exhaust, ignition parts and tailgate piece with flat stainless bonding cloth (1" wide stuff with a grommet every 4" or so), checked to see if my diodes out of my alternator were leaking (supposedly a problem on many Toyota's) and put an inductive type mobile impedance matching unit from MFJ Enterprises as well as a matching coil at the base of the antenna. All of a sudden I started to see my noise level drop, and my ability to hear all stations went up.

The KØBG website is technical in nature, but Alan is attempting to make things easier to understand with notes and stuff. I suggest taking a look, even though some in the club would argue that he has no idea of what he is talking about. Almost 30 years in this hobby says something. Take it for what its worth. But at least try a couple inexpensive things and see if it doesn't improve.

I expect to get a spool of tin coated copper strap Monday and will work on bonding when I get it.

But to put things in perspective I can get a very strong signal from stations in Canada, Massachusetts. Basically 100 to 400 miles is no problem and they can hear me no problem including while driving. In fact this stations are so strong, I can RF gain down to 60%, eliminating the atmospheric almost completely and call it good. In fact, I can leave the RF gain at 100% and simply turn down the volume.

When I succesfully communicated with Florida, Alabama and Minesota again I did not have trouble at all and got a good signal report. I suspect these stations had a massive antenna and conditions were favorable.

The proximate stations were talking to remote stations. Yesterday I heard the Canadian talking to London and today a Canadian was talking to Honolulu.

I can only hear these London/Honolulo remote stations on 100% RF gain with up the volume. The white noise is quite loud but not painfully so. I doubt the remote stations can hear me.

I am just wondering. If I can get good communications 400 miles radius with just as installed, what am I after? I much more will I have to do and to gain what?

There is a difference in noise when the car is running and when the engine is off. But that engine noise is not a factor in understanding remote station since it is at the same noise level as the white noise. It is just different.

This morning I heard a strong station (59+20) taking to a weak station (53).
My gain was at 100%. I suppose if I gain mine down to 90 or 80% I would hear the strong station perfectly, but non of the weak station.

Using the above conversation I played with all my filters and combination of filters to see what it means to the weak station and the strong station.

Keep in mind the effects that the atmospheric conditions have on radio waves. They are predictable (sometimes) with the time of day, and obviously with the sunspot cycle.

I usually have great QSO's on 17M phone in my later afternoon (~11PM-ish GMT). And this propagation travels fast. It starts on the eastern seaboard and ends up in Japan in a very short period.

My 20M voice contacts are good for weekend mornings. I can usually hit eastern europe from my mobile rig from between 2-4PM GMT my time.

My 40M voice stuff is mostly at night. From 1AM GMT to 11 AM GMT I get really good propagation. I made a good QSO to Hawaii on 40 in my early evening. But right around 12PM GMT the international broadcast stations wake up and 40M goes dead for amateur traffic. Too much QRM.

I made one 10M contact in my history as a licensed amateur. That was just after I got my technician license. I spoke with a guy for about 90 seconds from California. That was it. No luck on 10M since then, but I'm hoping that we start climbing on the back of the next sunspot cycle so I can make things fun. 10M when I was 12 and listening to my father (early 80's) was kind of cool. He took a converted CB radio, and transmitted around the world with 4 watts of power to a 50' high 10M beam.

That last experience is to show how dependent these radio waves are on conditions. My father now has legal limit amplifiers to beams up 80' in the middle of nowhere New Mexico and 10M is still dead. 20 years ago (during what some consider the best sunspot cycle to date) 5W on a converted CB rig literally went around the globe. Cayman Islands to Christmas Island.